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October 14-20; More Russian Warmth

Russia, after opening its air space to the American military campaign in Afghanistan, also offered its oil fields as a secure alternative to dependence on the turbulent Persian Gulf. And in advance of a meeting set for today between President Bush and the Russian president, Vladmir V. Putin, word came that high-level talks had cleared the path for a breakthrough on key divisive issues: missile defenses and an expanding NATO alliance. ''Not only is the cold war over,'' Secretary of State Colin L. Powell said, ''the post-cold-war period is also over.''